Renoir & Love

Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Dance at the Moulin de la Galette, 1876. Musée d'Orsay, Paris, bequest of Gustave Caillebotte, 1896, RF 2739 © photo Grand Palais Rmn (musée d'Orsay) / Mathieu Rabeau

Renoir & Love aims to introduce viewers to the artist’s gift for showing love, friendship, and everyday emotion. Paintings portray couples waltzing in the summer air and lovers stealing a glance, families sharing a quiet moment and friends raising a glass, all through the eyes of an artist unmatched in capturing the complexities of how people connect. This is Renoir at his peak in the 1860s to 1880s, experimenting with style and theme to become an innovator of Impressionism.  

The exhibition includes his famous Bal au Moulin de la Galette (1876) from the Musée d’Orsay, Paris, on display in the UK for the first time. It is one of 40 paintings from collections around the world picturing the sun-dappled gardens and swirling dance halls of Paris.